Health in the Western World

General Discussion
1

Happy Thanksgiving to those who celebrate it – and to those who don’t.

Sadly, the often-interesting Scott Locklin sees nothing in the world of US health care to make him celebrate. His piece could be taken as a Cri de Coeur for the now vanished country in which he grew up; but the issues he raises seem generally to be endemic throughout the Western world.

Locklin on science | In which I explain things interesting, remarkable or silly. (wordpress.com)

With a little paraphrasing, here are Mr. Locklin’s issues about health in the US:

  1. Widespread obesity, with attendant health problems which dwarf Covid.
  2. Increasing numbers of people with mental health issues.
  3. Hormonal disruptors, masculizing women and feminizing men.
  4. Astonishing growth in autism, from 1 in 10,000 in the 1970s to 1 in 54 today.
  5. Growing numbers of people who claim to have serious allergies.
  6. Widespread drug use, both illegal and prescribed.
  7. Failure to recognize the rapid drop in female fertility after their early 30s.
  8. Public health officials sacrificing trust by being liars and fools.
  9. Sudden appearance of insanitary tent cities/favelas for the “homeless”.
  10. The very high costs of the US health industry.

The interesting question one might ask is – Are these issues the real problems? Or are they symptoms of underlying causes? And, if so, what are those fundamental causes?

Whether we are talking about medicine or automobile repair, accurate diagnosis is the essential first step towards dealing with the problem.

To be controversial, the growth in the health problems mentioned by Locklin correlates well with the decline in smoking since the 1970s. It is a common observation that people who stop smoking are at great risk of putting on weight – and obesity seems to drive a lot of other health issues (including even susceptibility to the Dreaded Covid-19). If Dr. Fauci suddenly reversed course (again) and stated that Science demands that everyone start smoking as well as getting “vaccinated”, would anyone pay attention?

6 Likes
2

There are some more fundamental problems. Physicians have been reduced to “provider” status, now equivalent to NP’s and even PA’s. Hospitalist shave replaced the primary care physician and hospitals now OWN the majority of “outside” practices.

?So who’s actually RUNNING the “health care system”. Well, hospital administrators and insurance companies, whose main drive is profit. Patients now are merely “profit centers”, as if their illnesses are of no consequence.

4 Likes